Of Gods and Wolves
by Dark-Dreymer
Summary: Tommy and Merton find themselves caught up in a Greek Myth and I use the word 'slightly' way too much. Tommy/Merton, Man-Sexxins and bad language within.


Title: Of Gods and Wolves  
Author: Dark-Dreymer  
Pairing: Tommy/Merton  
Rating: M for sexxins and bad language.  
Warnings: Oral (Because I found out from my friend Yasmin that some people get squicked by it.)  
Summary: Tommy and Merton find themselves caught up in a Greek Myth and I use the word 'slightly' way too much.  
Comments: Please note I wrote this all in one go without proof-reading and it's midnight so there's probably going to be some spelling errors.

* * *

Bowling on your own sucks, Tommy concluded. Merton had homework and so hadn't even attended The Factory to begin with and Lori had bailed on him halfway through their one-on-one game for the title of champ when her mom phoned and started screeching at her about forgetting to tidy her room (again). Still there were only a few rounds left and he was on course for a pretty high score and since he'd paid for the lane it was worth finishing.

It was while waiting for the pins to be set up for his final bowl that Tommy was approached by the girl. He didn't know her name and couldn't recall ever seeing her around, but being popular meant that a lot of people knew who he was and it was annoyingly common to be approached by strangers who seemed to know so much about him.  
"Tommy Dawkins?" Her eyes were and odd shade of brown, almost amber in the light of the Factory. Her hair couldn't seem to decide whether it was black or dark brown and hung in ridiculously straight lines on either side of her face. The dress she was wearing had simple straps across each of her slender shoulders and hung shapelessly down from that point; the material was crisp and white and reminded Tommy of hospital bedsheets.  
"Yeah, that's me." A smile of greeting in place of a name.  
"This is yours." The girl reached into some invisible pocket of her dress and pulled something out, "Well, not yours but you should keep hold of it." With that the object was thrust into his hands and she spun on sandaled heels and proceeded to vanish into the crowd.  
"Wait, what is it?"  
"You have to figure that one out on your own." A giggle that sent a shiver across Tommy's very being followed and then she was gone from sight.  
"No I don't." Tommy muttered, "Not when I've got Merton."

* * *

So technically Merton had told him that he was very busy with homework, but a complete stranger giving him something so... random, could only be a sign of supernatural goings on.  
"Tommy I'm very busy writing my essay so if you don't mind..." The greeting and goodbye combined was what greeted Tommy after a full minute of knocking in a series of increasingly irritating patterns.  
"Need your help." Tommy countered the dismissal, "Any idea what this is?"  
"That looks like?" Merton plucked the object out of his friend's grasp, adjusting to the weight made his wrist quiver oddly; "Yeah, see here." Merton spun the vaguely spherical object until the words 'To the fairest' were noticeably engraved in the golden apple.  
"What's that mean?" Tommy asked, his brow furrowed in confusion the way it did through pretty much any of Merton's explanations.  
"Well..." Pulling the door open Merton turned to one of his many bookshelves, searching for one tome in particular. Finding it he extracted the dusty book and slammed it down on the desk where Tommy was already waiting; "...In Greek mythology the goddess of discord, Eris, was scorned by the gods by not being invited to a party; so she crafted a golden apple with the words 'To the fairest' engraved in it."  
"That looks just like the girl that gave me the apple." Tommy pointed at an illustration below the passage Merton was reciting from, it showed a cartoon woman wearing a shapeless white dress; the golden apple was hovering between her two outstretched hands and the look on her face was a physical image of the giggle that had made Tommy feel so odd.  
"Tommy it's just an artist's rendition."  
"No, it looks exactly like her. So what happened next?"  
"Eris presented the apple at the party and three goddesses fought over it, each one believing she deserved it. Eventually to settle the squabble the apple was given to the most attractive man in all of Ancient Greece and he was given the duty of choosing which goddess should have the apple. Each of the goddesses tried to sway him; Hera promised to make her powerful and famous, Athena promised him all the wisdom of men and Aphrodite promised him the most beautiful woman in Greece. Paris gave the apple to Aphrodite, received Helen of Troy in reward and accidentally sparked the Trojan War which lasted twenty years and killed a lot of people. So Eris caused a lot of chaos with one golden apple, the end."  
"So that's Paris giving the apple to Aphrodite?" Tommy asked pointing to another illustration.  
"I guess, he looks a bit like you."  
"Yeah... creepy." There was a moment of silence before Tommy snatched the golden apple up again; "So what do I do with it?"  
"For now I suggest you leave it alone; we don't know why you were given it."  
"I guess." Tommy threw the apple between his hands like a baseball for a few moments before placing it back down on the desk, "Can you keep it here for now? I don't think my parents would understand if I brought a solid gold apple home with me."  
Merton imagined Tommy trying to come up with a plausible lie for a few seconds before smirking and agreeing to take care of the apple.  
"Thanks Merton. See you tomorrow then." With that Merton was alone in the Lair with a solid gold apple.

"'To the fairest'" Merton read the words engraved on the apple to himself as he spun it in circles on his palm, "No wonder she gave it to Tommy." A dreamy sigh was the gateway for Merton into a realm of memories and daydreams of Tommy; his smile, his eyes, the muscles he worked so hard for, the power that he showed so easily when he was wolfed-out and, feeling slightly guilty, Merton would think about the way Tommy's ass looked when he wore those ever-so-slightly-too-tight jeans.  
"You like him don't you?" Merton fell right off the back of his chair at the sound of a woman's voice, it wasn't his mom and definitely not Becky. Staring upwards through the slight haze gathering across his vision from the fall, Merton found a woman perched on the edge of his desk looking as if she was there all the time.  
"Who're you?" Merton bounced to his feet, eyes darting between several of the weapons nearby as he tried to remember which were ornamental.  
"Not to observant are you?" The woman flicked a silky mass of golden curls over one shoulder and shifted her position on the desk slightly, one hand coming to rest of the book, "Here." Merton cautiously accepted the book and looked down at the page, it took some seconds to notice what was different. The picture of Paris and Aphrodite now only contained a picture of Paris (Who still resembled Tommy.)  
"You're Aphrodite?" Merton asked in shock.  
"Very well done." Her voice was almost a purr, "Now as I was saying. You like him, don't you?"  
"Like who?" Merton was still holding the book and his brain was having difficulty comprehending that he was talking to a Greek goddess, not just any goddess at that the goddess of love and beauty.  
"Who do you think?" A lazy eye-roll made Merton feel slightly indignant.  
"What, Tommy?" Merton forced a fake laugh, "I so do not..." A glare from Aphrodite sent all the fight right out of Merton, "...not like like him. Okay so he makes me feel all tingly inside is that so wrong?" Merton couldn't help the little grin that broke out when the tingly feeling happened at just the thought of his friend.  
"Would you like him to love you?" Aphrodite leaned even further forward, her spine seemed to be made of plasticine because she was still perched on the edge of the desk but her face was mere inches away from Merton's, one exquisitely waxed eyebrow arched in question.  
"I..." Merton started but then stopped. He did want Tommy to love him, but this wasn't a myth and nobody could force someone to fall in love with someone else, not even a goddess.  
"You're doubting me Merton." She didn't sound angry, just a little disappointed. One manicured finger traced it's way down the side of Merton's face, coming to rest under his chin; "Do you want to see what it'd be like? Hm?" The goddess leaned closer and whispered softly in Merton's ear, so soft he didn't catch the exact words.

_Merton was stood in front of a kitchen sink, rubber gloves of a hideous shade of yellow covered up to his elbows and his hands were buried under sudsy water. A small but tidy stack of plates sat on the draining board beside him. A loud giggle made him turn and there was Tommy, obviously older but still gorgeous Tommy Dawkins, sat in a wooden dining chair trying to force a fussy toddler to accept a mouthful of yogurt.  
_"_It's not that bad, see?" Tommy ate a spoonful of the vaguely pink mush and then refilled the spoon, the girl in the highchair still kept her mouth tightly shut when the spoon moved anywhere near.  
_"_Papa don't eat all the yogurt." A young boy with a mess of brown hair identical to Tommy's grabbed the yogurt out of Tommy's hand and turned to the girl in the highchair.  
_"_Here ya go Stacey, it's an air-plane." The boy proceeded to make a variety of plane-like noises as he flew the yogurt laden plane right into his sister's face, smearing a good deal of strawberry paste across her cheeks and chin.  
__Merton chuckled to himself, the whole thing was a picture of domesticity and it suited Tommy so well. Tommy pushed his chair out and away from the table, leaving the kids to fight over the yogurt.  
_"_Guess I'm on bath duty tonight." Tommy said, wrapping his arms around Merton from behind; chin balanced on the shorter man's shoulder.  
_"_Guess so." The words left Merton's mouth without him thinking.  
_"_I promise I'll get the dishwasher fixed by tomorrow." Tommy placed a kiss to Merton's cheek, simultaneously it felt like the most natural thing in the world and made Merton's heart beat faster.  
_"_Don't worry about it." Merton pulled the plug from the sink and turned around to hug Tommy close.  
_"_Ew, wet gloves." Tommy teased. Rolling his eyes Merton turned back to the sink, dropping the damp gloves in their rightful place behind the taps.  
_"_Better?" Merton asked throwing his arms to the side.  
_"_Much." Tommy grinned and picked Merton up by his waist, spinning them round in circles until a splat sound and the voice of a four-year-old who knows they're in trouble saying 'Uh-oh.' made them stop.  
_"_James." Merton half-groaned taking in the sight of their son, their daughter and most of the highchair covered in strawberry yogurt.  
_"_I've got this." Tommy stated, picking up both the kids and tucking one under each arm and heading upstairs to clean them up._

"What was that?" Merton gasped as the... whatever it was, faded and he found himself once more staring into the hazel eyes of Aphrodite.  
"What your future could be if Tommy falls in love with you. Now, do you want him to love you?"  
"Yes." Merton answered immediately, his voice full of desperation; "But..." But he'd dealt with magical means of love before, he very much doubted Aphrodite wanted to put him in a bottle like what had happened to Becky when she'd tried to make Tommy love her through genie magic, but the point still stood that Aphrodite probably wanted something in return, "What's the catch, what do you want from me?"  
"Isn't it obvious?" Aphrodite rolled her eyes again, one hand now toying with the golden apple.  
"Oh." If all she wanted was the apple... "Okay then."  
"Good." The goddess beamed a too-white grin and vanished.

* * *

Merton was nervous the next day at school. Of course there was no reason for him to be, just because Tommy suddenly loved him now didn't mean he'd do anything drastic like kiss him right here in front of the lockers... right?  
"Hey Merton." Tommy grinned his usual happy grin and they spoke about the apple and trig homework and then the bell for first lesson sounded and Tommy sent an apologetic wave over one shoulder as he hurried off for English class and Merton found himself wishing that Tommy had kissed him in front of the lockers after all.

The rest of the day was exactly the same, and by exactly the same Merton mean exactly the same as any other day at school, ever! Tommy loved him now, Aphrodite told him as much... well not in so many words, but the point still stood that he and Tommy should be walking hand in hand down the corridor planning a date for Friday night right now, not walking side by side chatting about zombie movies through the ages.

"Aphrodite!" In a foul mood the first thing Merton had done after throwing his backpack down on his bed was storm over the the book still on his desk, turn it to the page depicting Paris and Aphrodite and yell the goddess's name as loud as he could at the image.  
"You bellowed?" The golden-haired image turned it's head and quipped.  
"You said he'd love me." Merton poked the image accusingly.  
"He does." She replied matter-of-factly.  
"Then why didn't he kiss me? Why didn't he push me up against the lockers and proceed to make-out with me so fiercely I could barely breathe? Why didn't he declare undying love to me in front of the entire cafeteria?"  
"Let me ask you one question first." When Merton didn't respond the 2D goddess took that as a right to ask, "You love him, correct?"  
"Of course!"  
"...and how many of those things you mentioned have _you_ done?"  
"I..." And suddenly it struck Merton, Tommy loved him but he didn't know that Merton loved him back.  
"Thank you." Merton enthused to the picture of Aphrodite, who rolled her eyes yet again and turned back into her normal position, ceasing movement immediately.

* * *

He could have phoned, but calling Tommy and telling him they needed to talk would likely result in a wolfed-out Tommy arriving ready for a battle with some bad guy, besides if Tommy really did love him he was bound to drop by the Lair at some point or another. Merton's theory proved correct, late into the evening and well after the sun had set the door to the Lair opened with an almost shy creak, "Merton?"  
"Hey Tommy." Merton put the down the book he'd been holding in front of his face but not reading for the past half hour and smiled at his friend who was stood in the doorway looking a little unsure of himself.  
"I wanted to talk to you about something."  
"Oh." Merton tried to keep the little tremor of joy out of his voice as he stood up and made his way over to Tommy, "I'm all ears."  
"I, uh..." Tommy seemed a little unsure of how to continue and settle for tugging at his shirtsleeve slightly, eyes staring fixedly at his sneakers. Merton took a few seconds to cherish the sight he knew he'd probably never see again (Because, after all, when was Tommy Dawkins nervous about anything?) before stepping on tiptoe and pressing his lips to Tommy's.

There were a few second in which Tommy was unresponsive (During which Merton's mind went into paranoid overdrive; Aphrodite had betrayed him, he'd dreamed the meeting with Aphrodite, he'd hallucinated the meeting with Aphrodite and was a raging schizophrenic and now he'd be sent to a mental hospital and be forced to share a room with a bald man in his forties who keeps mumbling that 'the rabbits are coming' in his sleep and the cafeteria food will be even worse than the stuff at school and...) and then the taller boy shifted into the kiss, one hand resting at the back of Merton's neck to pull the goth closer, the other settling on a hip, squeezing gently in a way that made Merton moan softly.  
"Whoa." Tommy whispered when they finally broke apart, "You?"  
"Yeah." Merton giggled slightly hysterically, leaning back up kiss Tommy again.

Merton had lost track of time by the time he felt Tommy lifting him upwards, Merton was only to happy to throw his arms round Tommy's neck and wrap his legs tight round his friend's (Boyfriend's?) waist. He was vaguely aware of the feeling of movement as he sucked at a spot on Tommy's neck, and then he felt himself landing on a soft mattress and everything made sense.  
"God, Merton." The goth found himself pressed further down into the mattress as Tommy started pressing hard, passionate kisses down his neck, one hand working at the buttons of his shirt.  
"Tommy." Merton would probably feel dumb later for not being more articulate but for now he just arched against the form above him, and maybe things were moving a little fast but hopefully they'd be making this journey again so he could stop to enjoy the scenery then.

While Tommy opened the last few buttons of his friend's (Boyfriend's?) shirt he pressed another kiss to Merton's already red and flushed lips. Merton meanwhile had worked his hands down Tommy's back and slid dexterous fingers underneath the thin material, sliding the fabric up and off so that they could slide bare chests together.  
"Fuck..." Merton felt his already forming erection tighten at the softly moaned curse word, if Tommy had fallen to swear words this must _really_ be good, and if it was good for Tommy it was _incredible_ for him, "Merton, have you...?" Tommy lifted himself upright so he was knelt above Merton, the smaller man pinned between his legs.  
"No." Merton shook his head immediately, Tommy's question clear.  
"Me either." Tommy admitted a relaxed grin on his face, "...So what do we do?"  
"Oh..." Merton's mind ground to a halt, "I guess... this." Merton rubbed up against Tommy, glad to find a bulge similar to the one trapped in his own pants. Tommy growled (Literally growled) and then he was once again placing heavy kisses down Merton's neck; his clothed groin rubbing against Merton's with what felt like enough heat to cause some serious combustion if they weren't careful. While Tommy set about causing some serious hickeys, Merton slid both arms past Tommy's, flat palms sliding their way down the warmth of the other boy's back, coming to rest on his ass. The material was instantly recognizable as denim and for the first time that night Merton realized Tommy was wearing the ever-so-slightly-too-tight jeans.  
"Tommy, you are so hot." Merton didn't even care how dumb he sounded at that moment, all that mattered was that he was squeezing Tommy Dawkins' butt; he'd be the envy of pretty much every girl in school if anyone knew.

"Merton." Tommy broke away from their uncoordinated embrace, the smaller boy whimpering at the loss, "Pants off. Now." Merton had to bite his lip to stop himself coming at just the command in that tone. One hand clumsily worked his zipper down, his gaze too busy watching Tommy slide his jeans down to bother observing what his hands were trying to do. Pants and underwear slid down Merton's skinny legs and he kicked the cloth aside as Tommy threw his jeans and boxers over his shoulder; leaving the two of them horny and naked on Merton's bed. (Except for their socks, Merton noted absently, they both had their socks on still.)

"Tommy?" Merton asked hesitantly as Tommy's renewed kisses began to migrate south of his neck.  
"Trust me." Tommy pressed a soft kiss to Merton's stomach and smiled up at his friend, the lustful gaze making Merton groan uncontrollably; the groan was repeated at a louder volume when Merton felt the head of his dick embraced in moist heat unlike anything he'd ever experienced.  
"Tommy..." Merton made a slightly strangled sound from the back of his throat as he watched Tommy, one hand holding the base of his dick in place while his mouth slid up and down the top half of his shaft, "I, guh." Merton couldn't find words, his head falling back when the strain on his neck got too bad.  
"Oh god, oh god..." Merton knew he was babbling but the words were coming of their own accord, he felt Tommy's lips slide free and the boy worked his way back up Merton's body so he could quiet the babbling with another hard kiss; one hand working away on Merton's hard length at a pace that had the goth whimpering in pleasure; his whole body spasming as pleasure impulses bounced from nowhere to nowhere across his body.  
"Love you Merton." Tommy muttered as he pulled away from the kiss again.  
"Tommy, I..." Merton gasped as the warmth of Tommy's mouth surrounded him again, "I..." He had to bite his lip to stop another moan of gratification out. Lifting himself up on his arms Merton watched Tommy sucking him, hands holding Merton's hips firmly to keep him from bucking upwards. It was with some difficulty that he his eyes kept his eyes open because they kept trying to roll into the back of his head with the pleasure, "I'm going to..." Merton started a warning, then shuddered as Tommy picked up the pace. Biting into his palm to keep from shouting too loudly Merton came into Tommy's waiting mouth.  
"Fuck." Merton stated falling backwards as his whole body continued to twitch slightly with pleasurable electrical impulses, "I just... fuck." Normally Merton prided himself on being articulate but no other word seemed to describe what he was feeling right then, "I love you Tommy." He added almost belatedly, realizing he hadn't actually said it yet.  
"I know." Tommy chuckled slightly and pressed a few more soft kisses over the red marks still covering Merton's neck.

Merton looked up at the perfect grin and pounced forwards, pushing Tommy onto his back and settling atop him, "My turn."  
"You don't have to..."  
"My turn." Merton repeated shutting Tommy up with a kiss, before shifting lower and working his way down his friend's (Boyfriend's?) torso. Everything was fine until Merton reached Tommy's dick, standing proud and intimidating; sure Tommy had just done the exact same thing but suddenly the idea of fitting something that big in his mouth made Merton nervous. Wrapping his hand round the hardened muscle Merton pumped it a few times, a breathy inhale from somewhere above let Merton know his efforts weren't going unrewarded. Finding resolve from somewhere Merton sucked the head of the dick into his mouth, working his way lower and right to the root before his gag reflex made him withdraw sharply. Okay so gagging, not sexy, he'd just make sure to breathe through his nose. In, out, in, out, easy; gag, not so easy. Maybe he wouldn't try to go all the way to the root. Wrapping a hand round the base of Tommy's dick Merton tried sucking the rest into his mouth and found it manageable; okay easy, just keep doing this. Two minutes later Merton's jaw must be close to cramping up because it feels weirdly stiff and Tommy isn't a babbling wreck like Merton had been at this point.  
"Tommy?" Slurping away from Tommy's dick (Literally slurping), Merton was about to ask if he was really that bad at this, but Tommy was breathing deeply, eyes shut and mouth gasping for deep breaths, one hand scrunching the sheets.  
"Merton." Tommy's voice is a tiny whimper, his eyes open slightly and he looks at Merton in a way that makes every part of Merton's heart melt. Wrapping a hand round the slick dick Merton started to stroke it roughly, the way he himself liked it. His lips found their way to Tommy's again, but the kisses he gave had to be brief as Tommy kept breaking away with quiet gasps, obviously lost in pleasure in his own less noisy way.  
"Gonna come..." Tommy gasped after a moment, Merton reacted immediately sliding back down Tommy's body and sucking the hardened dick into his mouth, "Merton." Tommy whispered, eyes fluttering shut and back arching off of the mattress, his come spilling inside Merton's mouth. The taste was, hard to describe, Merton deciding swallowing the thick essence with some difficulty.

"Come here." Tommy beckoned Merton tiredly, the goth eagerly made his way back up the bed and settled into a loose embrace, "Love you." Tommy said kissing Merton on the cheek.  
"Love you too." Merton returned the sentiment and the two shared a lazy kiss for some time.  
"I'm sleepy." Tommy stated after the broke apart, suppressing a yawn.  
"You can stay with me." Merton promised, breaking away long enough to retrieve their underwear and clamber under the covers with Tommy.  
"Night Merton." Tommy said, pulling the goth into his arms.  
"Night Tommy." Merton smiled at the feel of a soft kiss to the back of his neck, eyes falling shut they were both asleep in moments.

* * *

Merton woke first the next morning, sliding out of Tommy's loose grip he got a shower before returning to the Lair to watch the other boy sleep. It wasn't a habit or anything but when Merton got the chance he liked to watch his friend (Boyfriend?) sleep, Tommy was always adorable when he was asleep, like a sleeping puppy only Merton wasn't allergic to Tommy.  
"Morning." Merton spoke up as Tommy began to shift around dazedly.  
"Huh..?" For a few seconds the other boy gave Merton a cute confused look, but then comprehension appeared in his eyes and he smiled, "Good morning Merton." The moment was somewhat ruined when Tommy's mobile started ringing. Tommy dove for his jeans and extracted the shrilly ringing device.  
"Hello? Oh, hi Mom." Merton winced at the vague babbling he could hear on the other end of the line, "No, I'm fine. I stayed at Merton's last night... Yes, his mom said it was fine... Sorry I forgot to call you... Uh-huh, okay I'll be home in a sec." The jock hung up and shot a slightly guilty look at Merton, "I'm in trouble."  
"I figured. Sorry."  
"Not your fault."  
"But if I hadn't..."  
Tommy pressed a finger to Merton's lips to get him to be quiet, "It was worth it." He assured him with a chaste kiss on the lips, "Is it okay if I use the shower before I go?"  
"Yeah sure." Merton stood aside to let Tommy out of the Lair.

* * *

"You had fun last night."  
Merton jumped, he'd been lost in the feeling of the goodbye kiss Tommy had just given him when the voice of Aphrodite brought him back to reality.  
"Oh, you saw that?" He tried to hide the embarrassment in his tone.  
"Indeed. So are you happy that Tommy Dawkins loves you?"  
"Happy? I'm..." Merton threw his arms in the air and fell back on the couch, he couldn't find words to express his joy and so settled for laughing ecstatically.  
"Good, then it is time for my payment."  
"Oh right. The apple." Merton stood up and turned to the slightly cluttered desk, moving a few papers aside until he uncovered the golden apple, "Here you go."  
"I don't want the apple."  
"But I thought you said...?"  
"I asked if it was obvious what I wanted, you said it was; but I didn't say I wanted the apple, you simply inferred that was what I meant. I desire something far more valuable than golden fruit." Aphrodite stepped up to Merton, who backed into the desk nervously.  
"Platinum fruit?" The goth asked hesitantly.  
"No." The goddess smirked, "I want your soul Merton Dingle."

* * *

Accumulated joy at the previous night, a tingle of lust from the goodbye kiss and a slight bit of worry about the trouble he'd be in when he got home had caused Tommy to wolf-out and even though he was several blocks away there could be no mistaking the scared little yelp that reached his wolf-hearing; Merton was in trouble. Turning a 180 Tommy charged back towards the Dingle house.

* * *

"Why would you need my soul?" Merton asked, edging around the desk to get away from the goddess, "A beautiful woman like you must have men throwing their souls at you."  
"True but I need all the souls I can get." Aphrodite pretended to inspect her flawless fingernails while watching Merton edge closer towards the door.  
"What would you do with so many souls?"  
"I grind them down into dust, then I use the dust to make people fall in love." At Merton's shocked expression she simply grinned, "You think love comes from nowhere? Now..." In a flash she was at Merton's side and her finger was under his chin. Merton felt all the strength leave his body and then his consciousness blinked out of existence.

It was at exactly that moment that Tommy threw the door to the Lair open, making his way across to the slumped form of his friend (Boyfriend?) Tommy checked for life signs in the goth.  
"What did you do to him?" Tommy glared up at the slender woman when he found no trace of breathing but a normal pulse.  
"I took his soul." The woman shrugged, crossing her arms.  
"Give it back?" Tommy stood upright, growling and flexing his claws.  
"Make me." Although she was a woman and it would be wrong to hit her, she had Merton's soul and Tommy needed it back. Unfortunately hitting her proved more difficult than the jock initially thought, every time he was about to land a punch or kick she'd simply vanish and reappear somewhere else in the Lair.  
"Who are you?" Tommy finally demanded, tired from throwing too many punches at thin air.  
"Why should you care... unless?" The woman suddenly giggled like a gossiping girl, "He fell in love with a werewolf, how perfectly precious."  
"Yeah, he did. How's that your business?" Tommy asked defensively.  
"Oh it's very much my business Tommy Dawkins. I'm Aphrodite, the goddess of love and two days ago your friend promised me his soul if I'd make you fall in love with him."  
"...But I've loved Merton for months." Tommy stated confused, "You couldn't do that."  
"Yes I could and I did, now if you don't mind."  
"Wait!" Tommy cut across the goddess, "You say you did this two days ago?"  
"That's right."  
"Well three days ago I was given a golden apple by a girl I didn't even know. I took the apple to Merton and he told me about Eris and about Paris and the deal he made with Aphrodite, and I listened to every word because I love him." Tommy made his way across to the desk and snatched up the discarded apple, "So you listen to me Aphrodite, I'm going to give you this apple and you're going to give me Merton back. Is that clear?"  
Aphrodite looked between the unconscious Merton, the apple Tommy was holding out and the fierce look in the werewolf's eyes; "Crystal." She muttered venomously, accepting the apple and vanishing in a flash.

"Merton?" Tommy turned to find the goth sitting up and looking a little confused.  
"Where did Aphrodite go?"  
"I sent her back to the book." Tommy went to the desk and came back with the book, Aphrodite was once again in the picture along with the Paris who bore a remarkable resemblance to Tommy.  
"That's good." Merton nodded, "I love you Tommy." He stated slightly tiredly, head drooping slightly.  
"I know buddy, I love you too." Tommy placed a kiss to the top of Merton's head and stood up; after all he still had to get home and listen to his mom yelling at him.


End file.
